First Day

It seems impossible, but it is true.  We have had some very big FIRST days around here within the past week.  Nora officially had her FIRST day of Kindergarten last Wednesday, and this morning, I dropped Liam off for his FIRST day of preschool.

Let's start with Miss Nora (who will be FIVE YEARS OLD tomorrow, by the way).

This girl has been SO ready for Kindergarten!  I knew she would love it, so I wasn't really worried about her adjusting to such a big change.  And, I was right!  She came home that first day ready to go back the next day (which she couldn't do because we do a co-op where she is in school every MWF, but homeschooled on Tuesdays and Thursdays).  She loves the social interaction, the structure, the expectations, and most of all, her teachers.  

There were no tears and no hesitation from her.  And as I walked away from dropping of my baby, my firstborn to her first day away from me, out of the nest, in the care of someone outside of immediate family for the longest period of time in her life......I nearly cried.  My heart realized how big of step we just took.  She walked a mere matter of feet to her new classroom, and I walked away to a parent meeting down the hall.  I definitely suffered a little separation anxiety.

 But not my Nora girl.  She embraced it and had a blast!

She is making new friends, learning new rules and classroom expectations, and maturing by the minute.  I love that she loves school.  I hope she always enjoys the thrill of learning.

(Can you see the bit of shyness in the picture above?)

 I  am so excited about all of the things this year holds for Nora.  The things she will learn, the projects we will do, the fights we will have.  I know she is going to shine!

 Here's Nora with her teacher Mrs. O'Hern on the first day of Kindergarten.

August 14, 2012

Now, on to my little man, Liam:

Whereas I didn't have much concern about how Nora would adjust to school, I have to admit that I have my concerns about Liam.  He is social, like Nora is, but he is much more of a creature of habit and comfort.  (Meaning, he can be a Momma's boy when it comes to new things).  We met his teachers earlier last week, and he seemed to like the class just fine, but we had some trouble sharing with his classmates.  

I think this year will be wonderful for Liam in many ways, too.  I know that where he is is exactly where we feel that the Lord has called us to put him.  I had no control over who Liam's teachers would be, so I can only trust what I know:  God KNOWS who his teachers are and he has sovereignly placed Liam in the class he is in, with those specific teachers and those specific classmates.  I can't wait to see how Liam grows this year!

 I expected there to be tears.  I thought for sure there would be some hesitation or some grabbing of my leg when it came time for me to drop him off.

 Alas, there was NONE!  He didn't think twice about going into that classroom, leaving me in my tears as I watched him go play. That was a direct answer to prayer. 

 I thought about him every minute he was away today.  I was hoping he was comfortable and at peace and most importantly, having fun!

 And he was!  When I picked him up today, he was all smiles!  He got a great report from his teachers and he even told me he wants to go back.  So, I'm satisfied with our first day.

 I mean, how could those teachers not love this face!?  Even if he is a mess!